All posts tagged ‘appgear’

When I was a kid a toy gun was just that, a replica of a gun that – if you were very lucky — might make some sort of noise when you pressed the trigger. With the technology available today, toy guns have developed much further, and now augmented reality is becoming more common as a way to enhance the experience. This is the case with the new Doctor Who Appgear Anti-Time Device, which is linked to iPhone, iPod Touch or Android devices to create a first-person shooter experience in your own home. There is also a second version of the toy which does not include a smartphone dock and is a more traditional toy weapon.

Firstly, I have to admit that it’s a source of slight consternation to me that the Doctor Who franchise should produce a range of toy guns when the character himself is generally against the use of such items, but that’s a matter far above the remit of a simple toy review. It is worth noting that although these are “guns” they are not called as such anywhere on the packaging and they do not “kill” the enemies you target; instead the devices fire a gateway that sucks them into the Time Vortex — although whether a child would pick up on this subtlety is not entirely clear, especially on the non Appgear version.

The Appgear device works by connecting to your smartphone or iPod which is held securely by a padded clamp to create a view screen on which you will see your current environment in real time. You will need to first download the free Cleric Wars app in order to play; when you initially run the app you’ll get the back-story of the Cleric Army, how it came to be in the Doctor’s self-imposed absence and how they created the device you’re holding (a Q.L.A. – Quantum Lokk Accelerator – Anti-Time Device) from scavenged parts of Daleks, Cybermen and Weeping Angels. The back-story is great and worth listening to even if you don’t buy the toy as the app is free, in fact you can even play the first level without buying the Q.L.A. device at all by tapping your finger to fire instead.